A school found a home while a city landed another part of its identity. The occasion at High Tech High North County was not so much a groundbreaking as a marriage ceremony.
Some 140 ninth-graders have spent the past school year in portable classrooms on the charter school's five-acre campus just off San Marcos Boulevard. On the final day of classes, everyone celebrated the beginning of construction. Contractor Bycor now gets 75 days without anyone around. Then, 156 new ninth-graders enter and the 10th-graders move into even more portables. By August 2009, the permanent high school will be finished. Then, middle schoolers will arrive to take over the portables and the process repeats.
High Tech High, based in Point Loma, is more than a charter school. It has won widespread acclaim for its project-based, individualized learning approach and has been granted district status by the state. It committed to opening schools in the South County, now building on the city's planned university campus, and in North County.
Its first choice for a North County home was Escondido. But negotiations broke down over the price of a city-owned parcel and there was an attitude problem as well. Escondido saw no reason why it should assist a charter school, even one with international recognition wanting to locate in a disadvantaged neighborhood. High Tech High administrators were not sure they wanted to locate in a city with the mean-spirited reputation Escondido was gaining.
Not so with San Marcos. The city, which still has considerable open land, is committed to being the educational hub of North County. Officials had chain saws at the ready to cut any red tape in the charter school's path. Permitting and regulatory approvals were accomplished in under 60 days.
So, on a stultifying day of record heat, the various participants gathered on an open field. City Council members Hal Martin and Rebecca Jones were mercifully brief while praising the city's newest gem. Campus director Nikki Hinostro reflected on the first year: “We've had the moments when they first say, 'I can do this. I want to be here. I am proud to be here.' ”
Matchmaker in this new union was Gary Knight, head of the San Diego North Economic Development Council: “It was a win for High Tech High because it puts them in a city that is focused on education. It was a win for the city because they get looked at for hosting a premiere educational model.”
Even the laid-back teenagers were excited. “It was better than I hoped,” student Halsey Herms of Carlsbad said of arriving on a campus where she knew no one, “and there are still three years to come.” Joe Pemberton of San Marcos, by contrast, never left his comfort zone. His first-year highlight was the Choose Your Own Adventure project, creating “World of Waffle Craft,” an assemblage that was a parody of war craft.
Charter schools are springing up all over California. They are public schools that must meet standards but are freed of many state regulations. They receive average daily attendance money, but no construction funds. High Tech High has proved particularly adept at using grants, philanthropy and obscure tax credits while setting aside 15 percent of operating funds for capital programs.
Some charters are struggling – Bayshore Prep in San Marcos has been given a year's reprieve to shape up or shut down. Some are just embarking on a grand experiment – North County Trade Tech High opens this fall in Vista for students interested in construction trades.
And some charters have already won acclaim, state recognition and can show a proven record. (Every High Tech High grad this June, all 297, was accepted into college.)
San Marcos is creating its identity as a city and is happy to have High Tech High. High Tech High, meantime, is happy to be home.
